With Branstad appointment, Iowa poised to have first female governor
Iowa soon will have its first female governor.
With Gov. Terry Branstad set to resign to become the next U.S. ambassador to China, Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds will, at some point in 2017, ascend to the position, the Cedar Rapids Gazette reported last week. When that happens, Iowa will no longer be among the 23 states that have never had a female governor.
Reynolds has been Branstad’s lieutenant governor since he won another term in 2010.
Branstad, the nation’s longest-serving governor, last Wednesday accepted the ambassador position offered by President-elect Donald Trump and cleared the way for Reynolds to take over. Branstad must be confirmed for the post by the U.S. Senate after Trump is inaugurated on Jan. 20, The Des Moines Register reported.
Reynolds, 57, grew up on a farm near St. Charles and started her career working for an independent pharmacist in Mount Pleasant. She worked for the Clark County Treasurer’s Office and eventually ran for county treasurer. After she was elected to the job, she held the position for four terms. In 2008, she was elected to represent District 48 in the Iowa Senate before she was selected as Branstad’s running mate during his 2010 gubernatorial campaign.
Reynolds is at the forefront of many initiatives to advance women and girls in Iowa. Among her accomplishments, she works to advance STEM education in the state, especially among young girls. She helped launch Million Women Mentors to foster that goal. She also works to recruit more women to run for office.
Reynolds also was selected as a Des Moines Business Record Woman of Influence in 2015. Read more here
Branstad gave Reynolds some key jobs, such as naming her as co-chair of the Iowa Partnership for Economic Progress board, which is made up of leaders in the state’s major industries, the Omaha World Herald reported. In recent years, Branstad also put Reynolds in charge of trade missions to China, Brazil, Thailand and other countries.
Tim Albrecht, a public relations consultant who previously served as Branstad’s spokesman, told the World Herald that Reynolds is in a strong position to run for governor in two years. She will be seen as the incumbent, he said, and Republicans will think twice before opposing her in a primary.
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